WALTHAM — Many restaurants offer vegetarian and vegan options on their menu. But how many have a separate dining room and kitchen for vegans and vegetarians?
Peppino’s Dosa, a restaurant specializing in Indian fare at 434 Moody St., recently expanded its footprint, allowing it to do just that — two kitchens and two dining rooms under one roof.
Co-owners Shingara “Peppino” Singh, Jay Singh and Laddi Singh believe they're among a very small number of Indian restaurants in Greater Boston that have measures in place for vegetarians to dine without the possibility of cross-contamination from meat. There's even a separate dishwasher for all plates, flatware, glasses, pots and pans used to prepare vegetarian and vegan dishes.
Peppino’s Dosa’s extensive menu offers 70% vegan and more than 90% gluten-free dishes.
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Why is it necessary to have separate kitchens, dining rooms?
Before its expansion, Peppino’s was strictly a vegetarian restaurant with one kitchen. But many guests suggested they add meat dishes, so when a drycleaning business closed next door, the restaurant took the opportunity to expand.
After extensive renovations, the second kitchen and dining room were added about four months ago to accommodate meat eaters. The original part of Peppino's remains vegetarian or vegan.
Event takeout orders are bagged separately. Vegan and vegetarian orders are bagged on the side of the restaurant that is meat free. If someone orders both vegetarian and meat dishes, the vegetarian food is bagged first with a red round sticker placed on the bag, then it is brought to the other side to fulfill the meat part of the order.
Preparation and storage areas are also separate for each side of the restaurant and each kitchen.
The two sides of the restaurant are connected, but separate. There is one entrance for the restaurant.
Many guests, especially those of Indian descent, do not eat meat or anything that has touched meat, not just out of preference but for religious reasons, said Jay Singh. Many travel from out of state — some as far as New York — to dine at Peppino’s because they like that it has the separate vegetarian kitchen and dining room.
Singh, who is vegetarian, has experienced restaurants that do not have a dedicated vegetarian kitchen, and has found remnants of meat in his food.
"It happened three times at the same restaurant chain at three different locations," he said.
Vegan and gluten-free menu
Seventy percent of the dishes on Peppino’s menu can be made vegan (no meat, dairy, butter or egg products) and 90% an be made gluten-free, Singh said.
He said he has seen increased demand for vegan food in recent years.
Other restaurants owned by the Singh family
The Singhs also own Soul of India in Sudbury (opened in 2013); and two Italian restaurants, Da Vinci Bistro in Sudbury (opened in 2016) and Da Vinci Ristorante in Waltham (opened in 2022).
Shingara got his nickname, “Peppino,” from an Italian family in Germany. He learned to cook Italian food there during the mid-1980s, and worked at an Italian restaurant. He speaks fluent Italian, German and Punjabi.
Shingara Singh came to America in 1992. He worked at House of Blues and La Campania before opening his first restaurant, Da Vinci, in Boston in 2007 (closed in 2018).
Peppino's Dosa opened in 2020.